The End of The Nomad
by Micromotor
Summary: Elric, a wanderer with precious few memories of his family, seeks to uncover the secrets behind his mother's life. At the same time, forces are at work, ones that will inevitably make their way throughout Ferelden. Just how will this nomad react to being thrusted into events that always seem to hover around him like flies?
1. A Brief Departure

The sunlight warmed everything it touched. The gentle breeze stirred the grasses and flowers to life, and the cloud formations were always something wonderous to watch this time of year. Elric was missing out on the clouds, however.

Why? Because he was asleep.

Around him, there were several bears approaching the sleeping man, intent on making him their next meal. Once they were within a few feet, however, they were rapidly drawn in by his soothing aura radiating from something hung around his chest. The closer they got, the more at peace they felt, until they closed their eyes and joined the man laying on the ground...

OOOOO

When Elric awoke, darkness had overtaken the sky. Hearing multiple snores, he cleared his eyes and looked around him. Once again, otherwise deadly predators turned to mush as soon as they got close. Once again, he wondered what exactly was _in_ the vial around his neck.

All Elric knew was that his mother's heirloom was the key. It was a small glass vial, containing a blue liquid that seemed to quell anything and everything that wasn't a human, dwarf, or elf.

Except darkspawn. _Especially_ not darkspawn.

Staving off another trip down memory lane, Elric finally turned his awareness to his surroundings. The forest surrounding him was thickening, with tree leaves changing in color from a green to a reddish orange. Based on that, Elric knew he was headed in the right direction; soon he would be on the path to the Dalish camp he set out for a week ago.

It was about time he met his mother's clan.

OOOOO

Elric never knew why his mother had abandoned her clan. All she ever told him was that there were certain approaches the clan took to securing their safety, ones that she didn't approve of.

The sound of moving air was his only warning, and it was just enough to save his life. He tried to roll to the cover of a nearby tree cluster, but three arrows slammed into his right arm, each less than a few inches apart from each other.

Fortunately, Elric was still rolling, and came to pass the first trunk just as two more arrows punctured the ground right behind him.

That was close, Elric thought. These opponents-or opponent, he amended-seemed to know what they were doing. They struck as he finished ascending a hill, where going to cover would be impossible to hide. Sooner or later, he would be flanked, and that would be the end of his short life.

No way in hell was he going to let that happen.

Figuring that he could, at least, find out how many assailants he had, he let his voice break the otherwise silent night. "I surrender!".

The air was silent followed his proclamation, which was broken by another voice ringing out, "Prove it!".

The man who spoke had a hardened tone, one that sounded forged from dozens of battles. Whether it be from wildlife or from more sentient beings, it didn't matter. If Elric didn't satisfy this man's demands, he would be dead in a heartbeat.

The ache in his right arm ached in resounding agreement.

Raising his arms, Elric followed with the rest of his body into the exposed air in front of the trunk, fully exposing himself to his adversary.

Seconds turned into minutes, and Elric heard bickering in what he knew to be ancient Dalish. While he wasn't very fluent with his native tongue, he was able to make out "medallion" and "danger". It was apparant that they **-** for there were at least two voices he could make out-were arguing about him. But what about his medallion was dangerous?

Suddenly, the first voice overcame the second, and he returned to speaking the common language. "You are coming with us. Xeral will know what to do with a trespasser like you."

Complying with the still unseen assailants, Elric moved towards the shadows that they were concealed behind. Once he passed the trees, the Elves came to his left and right sides, preventing any means of escape.

 _Well_ , Elric supposed, _at least this way I can get to my old home sooner._

Unbeknownst to the Elves and Human, someone was observing their movements. Things would be progressing faster than anyone had thought possible. Soon, the next step could be taken, and the day of the ritual would be right around the corner.

 _Yes,_ it thought _, lead me to my prize, foolish ones_.

OOOOO

 **Hey guys! Sorry I've been off the grid for awhile now. With school coming to a close, I'm trying to stay afloat, and that means I sadly can't do anything on here. Now, however, I have a few days free, so I might be finally able to get a chapter or two in before finals!**

 **Now, as for this story. It's been an idea in my mind for a few weeks, and I haven't been able to work on my other story at all because of it. So I decided to give this one a shot. Should I make this a long story? Or would it be better to make this one a bit shorter? I put this one's fate in your hands! Good day to all, and to all a good night!**


	2. Getting in Deep

The path to the Dalish camp was much more mundane than Elric had thought it would be. His 'escorts' knew the most winding pathways to their camp, and decided to take him on a field trip. He was annoyed, but not surprised. If a stranger came onto his turf, Elric knew he wouldn't give the intruder an easy time of it, either. At least they were kind enough to pull the arrows out of his arm so he could perform some basic first aid, cleaning the cluster of wounds, wrapping them in several layers of gauze to provide pressure and prevent any infections from settling in.

Turning to the man on his left, he asked him about something that had been bothering him for awhile. "Hey, I know I shouldn't be aggravating my captors or anything, but I couldn't help but catch part of your conversation earlier. What exactly is so dangerous about my medallion?"

The two men around him came to a stop, staring at him in disbelief. Before he could ask what was up, the man being questioned turned around, an arrow already drawn. The elf listened for a sound that Elric almost _thought_ he could hear, but it disappeared before he could register it as anything in particular.

Satisfied that nothing was going to jump out and spook them, the armed elf relaxed the strain on his bow, putting away his arrow and holstering his bow. "Let's go," he said. "There's nothing out there but our imaginations."

And so they continued their way to their original destination. After a few steps, Elric could have sworn that the vial on his neck grew hot for a moment, but the feeling faded as fast as it came. Shaking his head at his phantom sensations, he proceeded to follow his silent companions.

OOOOO

Whatever Elric was expecting to see as his mother's old home, he was _way_ off the mark. The large, tightly clustered tents, the lush greenery, the air of business that came with a fully functioning Dalish camp, was nowhere to be found. Instead, the ground in and around the camp was black, and was expanding outwards unopposed. What few tents still stood were lopsided, and it wouldn't be a surprise if they collapsed from a strong breeze.

What was the worst, however, was the smell. It was putrid, decaying flesh, and even though the bodies had definitely been moved some time ago, he could still smell decaying flesh.

Once again, Elric turned to his companions, hoping for some insight into the matter. "Alright, enough is enough. I came with you all this way, now will you tell me exactly _what_ is going on?"

The elf on his left snarled. "Impatient half-breed. If it wasn't for you, then there wouldn't _be_ a problem in the first place!"

Elric was about to give a rather scathing remark when another voice interrupted them. "Ki'shan, stop your childish arguement now! This isn't the time for **-** "

Whatever he was about to say was cut off by a series of hacking coughs, followed by a splashing sound on the ground. Worried, Elric approached the source of the voice, and what he saw would haunt him for years to come.

A man, clearly elderly from the wrinkles around his eyes, was laying down on one of the few untouched cots in the camp. There were many wounds littering his body, from arrow knicks to a large gash reaching across his chest. Strangely enough, every wound was patched up, but he still looked like he was on death's door. As his gaze turned to the old man's face, he collapsed to his knees.

The man's eyes had no pupils or iris. Instead, the center of his eyes were a pure white, and the outside of his eyes were a very dull grey.

This man was corrupted with the taint. There was no hope for him.

Elric clenched his fists ard enough to draw blood. Hearing another cough, his head snapped to the old man, who seemed to be gearing up to say his final words. "Young man, listen to me. None of this is your fault. The trinket you carry around your neck drew them in, yes, but if you weren't holding on to it, I wouldn't want to think of how much further this plague would be spreading. Take anyone you can find and GO!" Another cough that spat out more blood than bile stopped his talk, and he took a few moments to recover.

Taking the last of his strength, he continued speaking. "You need to go... find what's left of my clan, and... leave! Find the other clans, and... tell them of what happened here. United, we might be... able to defeat..." Whatever the man was about to say was never to be, for he had closed his eyes for the last time.

Taking a few moments to close the man's eyes, Elric sent a silent prayer for the safe passage of his soul, wherever he may wind up resting. Hearing a sniff, he turned around to an unsettling, but expected, sight.

Ki'shan and the man beside him were both crying, and suddenly Elric felt like an awkard third wheel, so he turned back around, pretending to be inspecting his medallion.

Oddly enough, it was beginning to warm up again. Not as searing as before, but heated enough to warrant his curiosity.

On a hunch, the halfling took one of the recently deceased man's knives and discreetly opened a slit in the back of the tent.

When he looked out, he could make out a figure in the distance, and what he saw was something he'd never wanted to bear witness to again.

The darkspawn had returned. So many of them, in fact, that they created a wall of decaying flesh as far as the eye could see, and it encircled the trio.

At some unseen signal, the corrupted beasts began to advance, and Elric discovered why his trinket was heating up.

It was warning him of the darkspawn. Oh, of _course_ it was darkspawn! He never could catch a break, could he? First it was his mother, and now himself?

Looking back, he saw the two elves had recovered from their mourning, at least for the moment, and saw the monsters on all sides. The one next to Ki'shan seemed to gather his bearings first, and came beside him.

"What is this?" he questioned. "Why are they here?" In lieu of a verbal answer, Elric pointed to his medallion, whose liquid was faintly glowing, radiating some sort of heat.

"Damn that woman! If she hadn't have been so utterly idiotic, then _maybe_ she'd still be alive!" His rage quieted, however, when a hand latched onto his shoulder, nearly popping the bones out of their sockets. Looking up, he would remember the rictus fury etched into Elric's face.

"Listen, _elf_ , for I will only say this once. My mother, for any and all of her faults, was one of _your_ clan! If there was anything she did that deserved such contempt, it has paled in comparison to how badly you ignored _her_ objections to your clan's methods." Elric's grip became tighter, and the unamed elf realized that his shoulder was at its breaking point. "And as much as I'd love to snap your shoulder like a twig, we have more pressing matters, like the small army of darkspawn closing in. If you have _any_ sense of self-preservation, you'll stop bashing the past and _help me get us out of this hellhole!_ "

His grip relaxed, and the elf decided to extend an olive branch. "You are correct. We should focus on getting out of here. Any ideas?"

Elric was looking back at the creatures closing in, looking for anything to use as an advantage. Suddenly, his eyes locked onto the leader, and a smirk found its way to his lips. "Yes, one. It's crazy, but it just migh work. Are you and Ki'shan in?"

Shaking their heads, Ki'shan and his friend were ready for anything. "My cousin and I are ready for whatever you have in mind. My name is Rakul, by they way. I don't want to be known as 'you' forever, you know?"

Raising an eyebrow, Elric conceded the point. "Fine, but only as long as you call me Elric. Now let's get focused so we can get out of here..."

OOOOO

 **That's all she wrote, folks! I apologize for the long wait, but a lot of my personal life just got incredibly complicated, and balancing that with work and family and your own sanity is very, very hard. I have my #1 Fish to thank for getting me past my writer's block, and all the other ones I've had recently. Thank you all, and to all, a good read :P**


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